Repairing Vintage Estate Jewelry Before Selling It

When you are dealing with vintage jewelry that is part of a large estate collection, the collection is often worth more if the jewelry is not broken. The age of the estate jewelry can make it difficult to fix properly, so finding a jeweler qualified to repair it can take some time, but is worth the effort in the end.

Estate Jewelry Explained

Estate jewelry is jewelry that is part of a deceased person's estate. The collection may contain all vintage jewelry, and in many cases, is a collection acquired over a lifetime. The value of the jewelry may be very high if the collection is high-quality jewelry. 

Selling a Collection

Often when working through someone estate, a family member or whoever is managing the sale of the estate may determine that it is best to sell all the jewelry as a single collection. If there are pieces that are high-quality jewelry but need repair, it can often be worth it to have a jeweler look at them and repair them. 

If the repair is done right for the age of the jewelry, the sale price can go higher than if the pieces sell without repairs. It is vital that the jeweler you use only repairs the damage and does not change the jewelry, as altering a piece can lower the value. 

Buying a Collection

For buyers looking at estate jewelry, buying the entire collection without repairs sometimes allows them to get a better price. The buyer can have a jeweler fix any damage to the pieces in the collection and then resell the jewelry at a higher price than they paid for it. 

Often the value of the collection is higher if it stays together. Still, in some situations, a single item or a set, like a necklace and earrings, maybe more valuable outside of the collection. 

Finding a Jeweler

If you have a collection of estate jewelry that you want to have some repair work on, start with jewelers that provide custom repair or create jewelry. It is critical that the jeweler knows how to make the repairs in a way that will restore the jewelry to its original state. 

A one-hundred-year-old ring or necklace needs repairing the way it was done at the time it was made, not by modern standards. A modern repair could detract from the value of the item, so if it is noticeable, the value of the collection or the item may have been higher before repairing it. An estate jewelry repair company should understand these needs.